Social Capital and Inequality

Catalog description

There are fewer concepts in sociology that are both more controversial and more widely discussed and employed in the literature. This course introduces to the deep theoretical bases of the concept, follows its historical growth within the discipline, covers empirical research on the topic, and addresses its connections to related sociological perspectives such as the social network paradigm and research on social inequality in different areas of sociology. The class will be dominated by largely by discussions of readings and theory. Students will also use the opportunity to apply the concept of social capital, and related concepts, to their own research projects, which will culminate in an independent paper to be submitted at the end of the semester.